Aviation: Dual Nationality

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what arrangements are in place for the advance registration of air passenger details for holders of duel citizenship who book flights and leave a country on the passport of that country and arrive in the UK using a UK passport.

Paul Clark: Passengers' passport data is collected by airlines at or before the point of departure and transmitted to the UK Border Agency (UKBA) under the e-Borders programme. Discrepancies, such as different passport details, will be picked up by UKBA staff at the border and investigated as necessary.

Departmental Public Expenditure

David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department spent on  (a) new furnishings,  (b) works of art and  (c) new vehicles in each of the last two years.

Chris Mole: The information requested for the Department for Transport and its seven executive agencies is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  £ 
			 (a) New furnishings  (b) Art  (c) New vehicles 
			  Organisational unit  2008-09  2007-08  2008-09  2007-08  2008-09  2007-08 
			  Central Department   
			 London Headquarters 287,683 504,646 1,162 0 0 0 
			 Air Accident Investigation Branch 18,374 26,529 0 0 0 0 
			 Rail Accident Investigation Branch 962 11,543 0 0 0 0 
			 Marine Accident Investigation Branch 823 103,878 0 0 0 0 
			
			 Driving Standards Agency (1)- (1)- 0 0 150,860 103,000 
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (2)- (2)- 0 0 0 0 
			 Government Car and Despatch Agency (1)- (1)- 0 0 1,315,000 1,004,000 
			 Highways Agency 259,820 1,799,366 0 0 (3)18,983.687 (3)624,832 
			  (4)3,117,871 (4)2,382,303 
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency (1)- (1)- 0 0 837,619 1,197,629 
			 Vehicle Certification Agency 8,599 6,329 0 0 0 13,915 
			 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency 98,920 164,179 0 0 1,273,850 676,490 
			 (1)( )Data not recorded as a specific cost category within the accounting system in use and only available at disproportionate cost.  (2)( )During 2007 to 2009 DVLA was in the process of refurbishing its Morriston site under a PFI contract. DVLA are unable to accurately provide a breakdown of the furnishing costs.  (3)( )Purchased.  (4)( )Leased.   Note:   The Highways Agency: Data at  (a) include furniture, office refurbishments and fit-out costs for offices and regional control centres. The increase in the 2008-09 vehicle purchase costs is due to the Highways Agency entering into a four-year framework contract on 2 January 2008 with two suppliers; Romaquip and Schmidt UK, for the purchase of over 430 salt spreaders and snow ploughs to replace its current fleet. The costs for 2008-09 relate to the first-year order comprising of a total of 159 salt spreaders, all equipped with snow ploughs, and a further 40 additional snow ploughs. The vehicles used by Highways Agency Traffic Officers are leased. The figures quoted are the total cost of the vehicle leasing contracts for each of the two years. Leasing payments cover the cost of the vehicles, servicing, maintenance, tyres and windscreens, etc. Most vehicles are leased for 18 months, or 150,000 miles. There are now 207 Traffic Officer Vehicles in the fleet.

Departmental NDPBs

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport for how many non-departmental public bodies his Department is responsible.

Si�n Simon: DCMS is responsible for 56 public bodies. These comprise: four public corporations, two public broadcasting authorities, one Executive agency, 47 non-departmental public bodies (36 Executive NDPBs, 10 advisory NDPBs and one tribunal NDPB), plus two unclassified bodies who receive Exchequer funding.
	Information and statistical data on the DCMS bodies is contained in the DCMS Public Bodies Directory, which can be found on the DCMS website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/images/publications/2009DCMS PublicBodiesDirectory.pdf
	Since publication UK Anti Doping (an Executive NDPB) has been created.

Members: Correspondence

James Arbuthnot: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he will reply to the letters from the hon. Member for North East Hampshire of 26 June and 14 August 2009 on Calthorpe Park Secondary School.

Bob Ainsworth: I apologise for the delay in the response. This was due to the large volume of letters this Department received on Afghanistan issues. A letter was sent on 26 January.

Monarchy: Succession

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of the legal advice upon which the Government relie in asserting that the provisions of Section 1 of the Act of Settlement 1700 do not give illegitimate children the right of succession to the Crown.

Claire Ward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Justice (Mr. Wills) gave on 25 January 2010,  Official Report, column 704W and the answer I gave on 26 January 2010,  Official Report, column 729W.

Offenders: Social Security Benefits

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many adults aged between 18 and 24 years old who entered custody in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009 were receiving state benefits at the time of entering custody.

Maria Eagle: Of those 18-24 year old offenders sentenced to custody during 2007, 3,426 were subsequently recorded as having 'state benefits' as their sole or most significant source of income before sentencing. The corresponding figure for those sentenced during 2008 was 3,255. The information was recorded within the Offender Assessment System which is used with 18-20 year old prisoners and with older prisoners serving sentences of more than 12 months. The numbers of assessments used to produce the 2007 and 2008 figures were 7,345 and 7,132 respectively. As the figures are drawn from administrative IT systems, they are subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale assessment and recording system.
	No figure is provided for 2009 as the data has not been fully collated.

Prisons: Drugs

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) visitors,  (b) staff and  (c) prisoners were caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into each prison in England in each of the last five years; and what steps have been taken in respect of those so caught.

Maria Eagle: The data are not available in the form requested.
	It is the National Offender Management Services' policy to report to the police all incidents where drugs are found in the possession of visitors. National data for the number of visitors arrested is given in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of visitors arrested( 1) 
			 2004-05 439 
			 2005-06 429 
			 2006-07 374 
			 2007-08 424 
			 2008-09 460 
			 (1) These figures include all incidents, the majority will be drug related.  Note:  These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. The data are not subject to audit. To disaggregate into individual prison data would require an investigation into each regional return for the past five years and would be at disproportionate cost. 
		
	
	Prisons often take action against visitors based on suspicion, and before they are caught in possession of drugs, including visit bans, closed visits or closely supervised visits.
	Data on the number of prison officers caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into an establishment are held locally and could, only be obtained by consulting all prisons across England and Wales. This would incur disproportionate cost.
	Prisoners caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into prison arc referred, to the police. Data, on the number of prisoners caught attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into an, establishment are held locally and could be obtained only by consulting all prisons across England and Wales. This would incur disproportionate cost.

Probation

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of time probation staff spend in face to face contact with offenders; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: Ministers are committed to increasing the amount of time probation staff spend in contact with offenders through reducing the bureaucratic demands on front line staff and tailoring the level of intervention to the risk which the offender presents.
	The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) does not routinely report on the proportion of working time spent in face to face contact with offenders. In December 2008, NOMS undertook a survey, over a one week period, of a small sample of Offenders Managers. It indicated that staff undertaking this role spent 24 per cent. of their time in direct contact with offenders.
	The survey did not caver probation staff responsible for delivery of Community Payback, Accredited Programmes or working within Approved Premises. The proportion of time spent in face to face contact with offenders in these areas of work is considerably higher.

Slough

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will set out, with statistical information related as directly as possible to the Slough constituency, the effects on Slough of the policies and actions of his Department and its predecessors since 2000.

Michael Wills: The Ministry of Justice's work spans criminal, civil and family justice, democracy, rights and the constitution. Every year around 9 million people use our services in 900 locations across the United Kingdom, including 650 courts and tribunals and 139 prisons in England and Wales.
	The range of the Department's policies and actions is wide and the statistical information relating to it is not normally collected on a constituency basis. Consequently, some of the information requested in the question cannot be provided in the form requested except at a disproportionate cost.
	Although data on sentencing for the period is not available for the constituency of Slough, it is available for the Thames Valley. This shows that the total number of offenders sentenced annually, was 44,691 in 2000 and 42,353 in 2007, the latest period for which such information is available.
	Likewise, the number of offences brought to justice for the Thames Valley area increased from 31,000 in 2001-02 (the earliest period since which such data has been compiled) to 51,400 in 2007-08.
	With regard to prosecutions, data is not available for the constituency of Slough. However, the total number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts in the Thames Valley decreased from 62,880 in 2000 to 54,090 in 2007.
	The latest data, which covers reoffending in the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, showed that the three-month reoffending rate for offenders on the probation caseload in Slough was 8.16 per cent. After controlling for changes in the characteristics of offenders on the probation caseload, there was a reduction in reoffending of 1.99 per cent. compared to the 2007-08 baseline. Data is not available prior to 2007 on this basis.
	The number of persons commencing supervision by the Probation Service in Thames Valley, was 3,853 in 2000 and 4,783 in 2008.
	44,212 civil non-family proceedings were started in the county courts of Thames Valley HM Courts Service (HMCS) area in 2008, compared to 49,696 in 2000. In respect of family law, there were also 3,573 private law applications and 218 public law applications made in the county or High Courts of this HMCS area in 2008-09, compared to 3,422 and 282 respectively in 2003-04, the first annual period for which these figures are available.
	In addition, at a national level:
	Local communities are being better engaged in criminal justice-by giving them a say in the types of Community Payback projects offenders carry out and allowing them to see justice being done, for example through the use of high visibility jackets. Offenders have now worked more than 14 million hours, with an estimated value to the taxpayer of over £80 million.
	Major constitutional reforms have been delivered, including devolution, the Human Rights Act, Freedom of Information, Lords Reform, and a new Supreme Court for the UK.

Vauxhall

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will set out, with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to Vauxhall constituency, the effects on the constituency of changes to his Department's policies since 1997.

Michael Wills: The Ministry of Justice's work spans criminal, civil and family justice, democracy, rights and the constitution. Every year around nine million people use our services in 900 locations across the United Kingdom, including 650 courts and tribunals and 139 prisons in England and Wales.
	The range of the Department's policies and actions is wide and the statistical information relating to it is not normally collected on a constituency basis. Consequently, some of the information requested in the question cannot be provided in the form requested except at a disproportionate cost.
	Although data on sentencing for the period is not available for the constituency of Vauxhall, it is available for London. This shows an increase in the total number of offenders sentenced annually from 202,478 in 1997 to 226,891 in 2007, the latest period for which such information is available.
	Likewise, the number of offences brought to justice for the London area increased from 122,500 in 2001-02 (the earliest period since which such data have been compiled) to 230,000 in 2007-08.
	With regard to prosecutions, data are not available for the constituency of Vauxhall. However, the total number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts by the Metropolitan police increased from 260,328 in 1997 to 265,709 in 2007.
	The latest data, which cover reoffending in the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, showed that the three month reoffending rate for offenders on the probation caseload in Lambeth was 8.05 per cent. After controlling for changes in the characteristics of offenders on the probation caseload, there was a reduction in reoffending of 6.88 per cent. compared to the 2007-08 baseline. Data are not available prior to 2007 on this basis.
	The number of persons commencing supervision by the Probation Service in London was 16,019 in 1997 and 22,233 in 2008.
	158,440 civil non-family proceedings were started in the county courts of London Civil and Family HM Courts Service (HMCS) area in 2008, compared to 263,305 in 1998, the first year for which these figures are available. In respect of family law, there were also 15,512 private law applications and 870 public law applications made in the county or High Courts of this HMCS area in 2008-09, compared to 11,684 and 1,095 respectively in 2003-04, the first annual period for which these figures are available.
	In addition, at a national level:
	Local communities are being better engaged in criminal justice by giving them a say in the types of Community Payback projects offenders carry out and allowing them to see justice being done, for example through the use of high visibility jackets. Offenders have now worked more than 14 million hours, with an estimated value to the taxpayer of over £80 million.
	Major constitutional reforms have been delivered, including devolution, the Human Rights Act, Freedom of Information, Lords Reform, and a new Supreme Court for the UK.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders were issued in  (a) Jarrow constituency,  (b) South Tyneside,  (c) the North East and  (d) UK in each year since their inception.

Alan Campbell: Antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued on application to magistrates courts and county courts became available on 1 April 1999. ASBOs made following conviction for a relevant criminal offence at the Crown court and at magistrates courts became available on 2 December 2002. The available information is shown in the table.
	Information collected centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the number of ASBOs issued only counts those ASBOs issued by courts in England and Wales and are not compiled below Criminal Justice System (CJS) area level.
	
		
			  The number of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) issued all courts( 1)  in the North East Government Office Region( 2)  (GOR) and England and Wales, 1 April 1999 to 31 December 2007 
			  Area  Apr1999( 3)( ) Dec . 2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 North East 22 22 29 55 134 268 176 122 
			 England and Wales 241 350 427 1,349 3,479 4,122 2,705 2,299 
			 (1) Includes ASBOs issued on application by magistrates' courts acting in their civil capacity and county courts, which became available on 1 April 1999 and ASBOs made following conviction for a relevant criminal offence at the Crown Court and at magistrates' courts (acting in their criminal capacity), which became available on 2 December 2002. (2) The North East Government Office Region consists of the Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria Criminal Justice System (CJS) areas. (3) From 1 April 1999.  Notes: 1: Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 2: Previously issued data have been revised. Prepared by Justice Statistics Analytical Services.

Firearms

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many guns were seized by the police in each year since 1997.

Alan Campbell: This data is not collected centrally.

Affordable Housing

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 20 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 816-18W, on housing: low incomes, if he will publish the figures for takeup of Open Market Homebuy from the second quarter of 2009-10 to the date of closure of the scheme to new applicants.

John Healey: Open Market HomeBuy was a scheme with two separate products, MyChoice HomeBuy and Ownhome. The latest dates for which new applications were taken for MyChoice HomeBuy were in mid May 2009, and in early July 2009 for Ownhome.
	Provisional data from April to September 2009 for Open Market HomeBuy published by the Homes and Communities Agency shows 3,194 completions in that period.

Construction: Company Liquidations

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many construction firms have gone into liquidation or ceased trading for other reasons in each of the last 10 years, broken down by local authority area or the lowest geographical area for which data is available.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The available statistics for insolvencies in the construction industry are shown in Table 1. The smallest geographical area for which these statistics are available is England and Wales as a whole. We do not have information relating to firms which have ceased trading for other reasons.
	Responsibility for statistics relating to business start-ups and closures (births and deaths) giving numbers of companies that have ceased trading (liquidations form part of these) has moved from the Department for Business to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
	
		
			  Table 1: Company liquidations in England and Wales in the construction sector 1999-2008( 1,2) 
			   Liquidations 
			 1999 1,529 
			 2000 1,474 
			 2001 1,509 
			 2002 1,840 
			 2003 1,728 
			 2004 1,653 
			 2005 1,775 
			 2006(3) 1,409 
			 2007(4) 972 
			 2008 2,702 
			 (1) Including compulsory liquidations and creditors' voluntary liquidations.  (2) From July 2007, construction is defined within the SIC2003; up to September 2006 it is defined within the Insolvency Trade Classification. No statistics by sector are available from Q4 2006 to Q2 2007 inclusive due to the change in industry classification.  (3) January to September only.  (4) July to December only.

Council Housing: Finance

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the written ministerial statement of 30 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 7-10WS, on housing, what the  (a) housing debt and  (b) servicing costs were in each of the 202 local authorities referred to in each of the last three years; and when he expects to conclude his review of council housing finance and the future of local council housing.

John Healey: I have arranged for a table showing the level of notional housing debt, and associated assumed interest costs, for each local authority with housing stock for each of the three years 2007-08 to 2009-10, to be placed in the Library.
	On 16 December 2009, I announced that the responses to the consultation on proposals for the reform of council housing finance showed overwhelming support for the principle of self-financing. I intend to make a further announcement in February which will confirm the progress we have made on self-financing and set-out more details of the proposals. I also intend to publish a summary of responses to the consultation in due course.

Bank Services

William Cash: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many retail bank branches there are per head of population.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury does not collect this data.

Civil Servants: Location

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which recommendations of the 2004 review of public sector relocation undertaken by Sir Michael Lyons have been implemented.

Liam Byrne: Over the last six years the Government have used Sir Michael Lyons' 2004 review to deliver significant relocation of civil service posts out of London and the south-east.
	The Government have made strong progress in implementing the Lyons review's recommendations. At pre-Budget report 2009, it was announced that the relocations programme has moved nearly 21,000 civil service posts out of London and the south-east-nearly a year ahead of schedule. At Budget 2009, the Government illustrated their commitment to the relocations agenda by agreeing to relocate a further 4,000 posts by March 2010.
	These relocations would not have been possible without the Government's willingness to implement the review's recommendations and to make the necessary investment.
	To ensure that Departments engaged in the relocations programme, the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) published mandatory guidance. The guidance (DAO 05/05) ensures that Government Departments, their executive agencies and sponsored bodies, at appropriate property events, provide evidence that illustrates their business need to stay in London.
	To take things further 'Putting the Front Line First: Smarter Government announced that Ian Smith would lead an independent review on relocations. The review will report in time for Budget and will outline how at least 10 per cent. of all civil service posts currently based in London and the south-east can be relocated in the medium term.

Stress

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2010,  Official Report, column 497W, on industrial health and safety, when his Department produced the document Introduction to stress awareness and management; and what the cost was of producing that document.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HMT produced the document entitled 'Introduction to Stress Awareness and Management' in 2009 as part of a package of measures in response to an identified need to manage increased risk to employees from stress and related illnesses. The document cost £0.96p per copy to print, based on a single print run of 2,500 copies. The volume printed was to cover the Treasury Group with sufficient extra to cover new staff for the foreseeable future. The preparation of the content was part of the normal work of the welfare officer and preparation for printing was done in-house by the Department's publishing team. The document is also available to staff in electronic format on the Department's intranet.

Discrimination: Older Workers

Gordon Banks: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps the Government Equalities Office is taking to tackle discrimination against older workers.

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps the Government Equalities Office is taking to tackle discrimination against older workers.

Michael Jabez Foster: We know that just because we are past 65 you are not past it.
	Through the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 the Government have ensured that older people have a legal right not to be discriminated against at work, or harassed because of their age. The legislation removed the compulsory retirement beyond the age of 65. The employer must consider this request.
	Research published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission on Monday found that the majority of workers over 50 want to continue working beyond the state pension age. We want to give older people flexible options and this is one reason why we have brought forward our review of default retirement age to this year.

Asthma: Drugs

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much he spent on metered dose inhalers in  (a) 2007-08 and  (b) 2008-09.

Mike O'Brien: The net ingredient cost of metered dose inhalers (including pressurised metered dose inhalers and dry powder inhalers) together with refills was £773.7 million in 2007-08 and £833.6 million in 2008-09. Figures taken from the Prescription Cost Analysis system, supplied by the Prescription Services Division of the NHS Business Services Authority.
	Metered dose inhalers are defined by those listed within British National Formulary sections 3.1 Bronchodilators, 3.2 Corticosteroids and 3.3 Cromoglaticate and related therapy and leukotriene receptor antagonists.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to provide funding for biomedical research into the causes, transmission and treatment of  (a) myalgic encephalomyelitis and  (b) other xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related illnesses.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply
	The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research. The MRC is a non-departmental public body which receives its grant in aid from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The MRC does not normally allocate funds to particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. When appropriate, high quality research in particularly areas of strategic importance maybe given priority in competition for funds, but research excellence and importance to health continues to be the primary considerations in funding decisions. The MRC always welcomes high quality applications for support into any aspect of human health and these are judged in open competition with other demands on funding.
	Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) continues to be a strategic priority area for funding and the MRC remains committed to supporting scientific research into all aspects of CFS/ME including evaluations of treatments and studies into the biological basis of the condition.
	The MRC recently held a CFS/ME research workshop where the recent findings on xenotropic murine leukaemia virus-related virus (XMRV) were among the items discussed. A note of the discussions will be published on the MRC website in due course.
	The MRC's National Institute for Medical Research is leading a programme on infection and replication of retroviruses (including XMRV)- One study within the programme is looking at how XMRV reproduces in the cell, its interaction with host cell factors and how it subverts the host immune systems.

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has allocated for  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses for its staff in 2009-10.

Phil Hope: The wages/salaries outturn for the Department for 2009-10 is not yet known. Based on projections, it is estimated that non-consolidated performance payments will represent a maximum of 1.7 per cent. of the pay bill for 2009-10.
	Non-consolidated performance payments are an integral part of the Department's reward strategy for staff at all levels . These payments have to be re-earned each year and do not add to future pay bill costs.

Hospitals: Admissions

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many attendances there were at  (a) accident and emergency departments and  (b) minor injury units in (i) December 2008 and (ii) December 2009.

Mike O'Brien: Information is not collected in the format requested. Information is collected weekly, not monthly. Depending on how the days of the week fall in any given year there can be four or five weekly collections in each month. In December 2008 there were four weekly collections, and in December 2009 five. The following table shows the number of attendances at all types of accident and emergency (AE) departments in England in December 2008 and December 2009, collected through the weekly collections. However, the figures are not directly comparable due to the difference in the number of data collections within each month. We have provided data for all attendances at AE departments as we do not collect separate figures for minor injuries units weekly. The data provided is from the Department's weekly SitRep management data which are not validated.
	
		
			  Number of attendances at all types of AE departments, England 
			   A E attendances (t housand)  Number of weeks of data collected 
			 December 2008 1,462.9 4 
			 December 2009 1,819.2 5 
			  Source:  Department of Health Weekly SitReps.

Hospitals: Admissions

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been admitted to hospital in  (a) Ashford constituency and  (b) Kent after being attacked by a dog in the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The Department is unable to provide data specifically for the Ashford constituency due to low numbers, as numbers between one and five would need suppressing due to the Hospital Episode Statistics protocol. The numbers of finished admission episodes for people bitten or struck by a dog by Kent Primary Care Trust (PCT) for the years 2004-05 to 2008-09 are provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for bitten or struck by dog by Kent PCT, 2004-05 to 2008-09: Activity in English NHS Hospital and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			   West Kent PCT  Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT  Medway PCT  Total 
			 2008-09 60 61 39 160 
			 2007-08 70 55 23 148 
			 2006-07 54 40 27 121 
			 2005-06 51 34 25 110 
			 2004-05 52 38 18 108 
			  Notes: Kent has been made up of the following PCTs: In 2006-07 to 2008-09: West Kent Eastern and coastal Kent Medway Teaching Prior to 2006-07 West Kent was formerly made up of: Maidstone Weald PCT South West Kent PCT Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley PCT  Prior to 2006-07 Eastern and coastal Kent: was formerly made up of: Swale PCT Ashford PCT Canterbury and Coastal PCT East Kent Coastal PCT Shepway PCT  Prior to 2006-07 Medway Teaching PCT was formerly made up of: Medway PCT It should be noted that the number of FAEs does not represent the number of patients as a patient may have been admitted more than once within a year.  Source:  Hospital Episode Statistics, The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Nurses: Schools

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the ratio of full-time equivalent school nurses to pupils was in  (a) North Cornwall constituency and  (b) Cornwall in each year since 2004.

Ann Keen: The information requested is not held centrally.
	The Department does not hold data on the ratio of school nurses to pupils. However, in the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Primary Care Trust (PCT), the number of full time equivalent qualified nursing staff in the school nursing area of work as at 30 September for each specified year, are given in the following table.
	
		
			  National health service hospita l and community health services-Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT:  qualified nursing staff in the school nursing area of work in each specified organisation as at 30 September each year 
			   Full time equivalent 
			 2004 3 
			 2005 9 
			 2006 13 
			 2007 15 
			 2008 18 
			  Note: Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT was formed in 2006 from a completer merger of West of Cornwall PCT, North and East Cornwall PCT and Central Cornwall PCT. Figures for earlier years are on aggregate of these predecessor organisation.  Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce Census.

Nurses: Schools

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many qualified school nurses there were in  (a) North Cornwall constituency and  (b) Cornwall in each year since 2004.

Ann Keen: The information is not held in the format requested.
	In the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Primary Care Trust (PCT), the number of qualified nursing staff in the school nursing area of work, as at 30 September for each specified year, are given in the following table.
	
		
			  National health service hospital and community health services-Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT :  qualified nursing staff in the school nursing area of work in each specified organisation as at 30 September each year 
			   Headcount 
			 2004 5 
			 2005 5 
			 2006 17 
			 2007 19 
			 2008 24 
			  Note: Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT was formed in 2006 from a completer merger of West of Cornwall PCT, North and East Cornwall PCT and Central Cornwall PCT. Figures for  earlier years are an aggregate of these predecessor organisations.  Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce Census.

Stress

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the advice issued to his Department's staff on stress recognition and management.

Phil Hope: The Department provides guidance to all staff and managers on stress recognition and stress management on the Departmental intranet. A text version of this guidance has been placed in the Library.
	In addition the Department offers a free counselling service as part of its employee assistance programme that gives free and confidential support to any member of staff who feels they need it.

Palestinians: Humanitarian Aid

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the  (a) Government of Egypt and  (b) Palestinian authorities on the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: The Department of International Development (DFID) has not had any recent discussions with the Government of Egypt regarding the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. We believe Israel continues to have obligations as an occupying power with respect to Gaza, and that the main responsibility for ensuring humanitarian access to Gaza therefore lies with Israel rather than Egypt.
	In mid-January, DFID's director responsible for the Middle East discussed the issue of support for Gaza with Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Fayyad and with the PA Minister for Planning and Development. DFID's office in Jerusalem also participates in regular meetings of the Humanitarian Task Force, in which the delivery of humanitarian aid to both Gaza and the West Bank is discussed between the UN, donors and the PA.

Somalia: Politics and Government

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the authorities in Somalia on the humanitarian situation in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: The UK Government are very concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Somalia. The United Nations estimate that 3.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. I met a delegation of Ministers, led by the Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdurashid Ali Sharmarke, in October 2009 and discussed the humanitarian situation in the country. Officials from the Department of International Development (DFID) also discuss these issues with the Somali authorities and international partners in Nairobi on a regular basis.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Foreign Relations

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Democratic Republic of Congo on Joshua French; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: There have been no discussions between the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on this matter.
	My right hon. Friend Gareth Thomas, Minister of State for International Development, raised our opposition to the death penalty with the President of the DRC during his visit to the DRC in September 2009. Our ambassador to the DRC and other British officials have also raised our concerns with the Government of the DRC regarding the death penalty. They have also raised concerns over alleged mistreatment and over aspects of the trial process.
	We are opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances. Where a British national faces the death penalty, we will make representations at whatever stage and level is deemed appropriate. We understand that the DRC has imposed a moratorium on the death penalty and hope that this will remain the case.
	We are cooperating with the Norwegian authorities on this case. The welfare of Joshua French remains our priority.

EC Law

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether any competences have been returned from EU to national level as a result of the application of the principle of subsidiarity since the Treaty on European Union came into effect.

Chris Bryant: The principle of subsidiarity is not a mechanism for returning powers to the member states, but for determining whether or not Community action should be set in motion.
	The member states, through the EU treaties, set the EU certain tasks and give it the powers to achieve those tasks. Article 5 of the treaty establishing the European Community states that, in areas which do not fall within its exclusive competence, the Community shall take action, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, only if and in so far as the objectives of the proposed action cannot be sufficiently achieved by the member states and can therefore, by reason of the scale or effects of the proposed action, be better achieved by the Community.
	Further guidelines for assessing whether these requirements are met are laid down by the Protocol on the application of the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality. The Protocol also requires the Commission to justify the relevance of any of its legislative proposals with regard to the principle of subsidiarity.
	The Lisbon Treaty strengthens the role of national parliaments in EU decision-making, so that for the first time national parliaments could challenge draft EU legislation on subsidiarity grounds. It is for Parliament to decide how to exercise its rights under these procedures.
	The Lisbon Treaty also, for the first time, empowered member states to withdraw from the European Union.

Shipping: Pay

Gwyn Prosser: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the legal advice he has obtained on the law of the sea and the application of the national minimum wage to seafarers working on foreign-flagged ships operating between two UK ports.

Ivan Lewis: Lord Malloch-Brown, then Minister of State in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, wrote to the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress on 24 July 2009, explaining the legal position regarding the application of the national minimum wage to seafarers working on foreign-flagged vessels in the territorial sea, including when operating between two UK ports.
	I am arranging for a copy of this letter to be placed in the Library.

Business: Lancashire

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assistance the North West Regional Development Agency has provided to businesses in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency in respect of the economic downturn.

Rosie Winterton: Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) established in 1999 has provided extensive support to businesses across the region including in the Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency. The NWDA's main support for businesses is through regionally available Solutions for Business products in which the agency invested £92.75 million in 2008/09. The Solutions for Business portfolio includes: business finance, improving innovation and efficiency, business start-up, advice on international trade, work force training, and sector development through regional cluster organisations. The primary access point is Business Link who provides companies with information, diagnostics and brokerage to specific types of support. In a direct response to the downturn Business Link can respond to emergencies within 24 hours and utilise the region's rapid response team if required. The agency and Business Link have also been working with partners such as chambers of commerce and local authorities to promote business support services and share intelligence on companies and sectors which have been impacted by the downturn. The NWDA has also worked with the banks and doubled its investment in business finance in 2009/10. The NWDA is tackling short-term economic problems whilst also taking a long-term view in line with the Government's New Industry, New Jobs policy which promotes investment in growth sectors to compete in the global economy.

Foreign Investment in UK

Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of foreign direct investment into the UK was  (a) in the electricity generation sector and  (b) in Wales in the last 12 months; and how many of the companies making such investment received allocations from the UK Innovation Investment Fund.

Ian Lucas: Table 5.3 of the Office for National Statistics publication MA4 gave the flow of foreign direct investment into the United Kingdom in electricity, gas and water as £12,350 million in 2007, about 13 per cent. of the total that year. These figures are due to be revised when estimates for 2008 are published on Thursday 4 February.
	The ONS does not subdivide its foreign direct investment statistics between different parts of the UK. The Welsh Assembly Government commissioned an Empirical Investigation of Foreign Direct Investment in Wales from the University of Wales Swansea, and this can be read at:
	http://wales.gov.uk/docs//dfm/research/090701foreign directinvestmenten.pdf
	None of these businesses have received funding from UK Innovation Investment Fund (UKIIF). We expect UKIIF to begin investing in technology based businesses during the first quarter of 2010.

Insolvency

John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions his Department has had with  (a) the Insolvency Service and  (b) administrators on the obligations to their creditors of successor companies to failed companies under pre-pack administration arrangements.

Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service is an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and has policy responsibility for insolvency matters. The Insolvency Service carries out the Secretary of State's function with regard to both the direct authorisation of insolvency practitioners and the regulation of the recognised professional bodies that authorise the vast majority of insolvency practitioners. The Department has therefore not had any direct liaison with administrators nor the recognised professional bodies on the issue of pre-packs as this has been undertaken by The Insolvency Service.
	New disclosure requirements aimed at improving the transparency of pre-packaged administrations were introduced on 1 January 2009, in SIP (Statement of Insolvency Practice) 16. The Insolvency Service is examining all information received from insolvency practitioners in relation to disclosures made under SIP 16, and is working closely with the recognised professional bodies to improve insolvency practitioners' compliance with the SIP. A report on the first six months' operation of the SIP was published by The Insolvency Service in July 2009 and may be accessed through:
	http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/insolvencyprofessionand legislation/policychange/sip16-final.pdf

UK Trade and Investment

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in each  (a) constituency,  (b) local authority area and  (c) Government Office region have received services from since 1 April 2008.

Ian Lucas: UK Trade  Investment (UKTI) services delivered by the English regions including Passport, English Regions Trade Advisers, MVS and charged services delivered through UKTI's overseas network are publicly available by Government office region on a quarterly basis from UKTI's Performance and Impact Monitoring Survey (PIMS) at:
	www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk/ukti/pims
	Services delivered since 1 April 2008 are captured by PIMS waves 13 onwards.
	For example:
	
		
			  Passport 
			  Firms supported  East midlands  East of England  London  North-east  North-west  South-east  South-west  West midlands  Yorks 
			 PIMS 13 (April to June 2008) 34 54 73 20 48 61 41 49 45 
			 PIMS 14 (July to September 2008) 62 72 56 43 102 72 50 60 46 
			 PIMS 15 (October to December 2008) 36 52 37 57 57 44 51 66 44 
			 PIMS 16 (January to March 2009) 29 46 48 18 54 54 56 40 34 
			 PIMS 17 (April to June 2009) 46 53 42 8 58 61 58 25 35 
		
	
	
		
			  OMIS 
			  Firms supported  East Midlands  East of England  London  North-east  North-west  South-east  South-west  West midlands  Yorks 
			 PIMS 13 (April to June 2008) 70 68 150 61 60 119 64 63 63 
			 PIMS 14 (July to September 2008) 76 69 167 53 65 102 56 70 63 
			 PIMS 15 (October to December 2008) 74 81 188 87 79 145 65 59 59 
			 PIMS 16 (January to March 2009) 77 82 169 68 68 117 61 63 47 
			 PIMS 17 (April to June 2009) 67 79 217 47 82 141 72 72 61 
		
	
	
		
			  MVS 
			  Firms supported  East m idlands  East of England  London  North-east  North-west  South-east  South-west  West midlands  Yorks 
			 PIMS 14 (July to September 2008) 21 18 25 2 7 5 0 7 5 
			 PIMS 15 (October to December 2008) 32 32 40 33 22 61 11 21 17 
			 PIMS 16 (January to March 2009) 84 8 78 8 25 90 53 19 17 
			 PIMS 17(April to June 2009) 53 29 25 10 11 28 29 27 56 
		
	
	Figures for constituency or local authority areas are not currently available.